This application is based upon and claims the benefit of priority from the prior Japanese Patent Applications No. 2002-024485, filed Jan. 31, 2002, No. 2002-024486, filed Jan. 31, 2002; and No. 2002-024566, filed Jan. 31, 2002, the entire contents of all of which are incorporated herein by reference.
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a camera system comprising a camera body and camera accessories such as interchangeable lenses, to a camera body applicable to such a camera system and also to a camera accessory applicable to such a camera system.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally, camera accessories including an interchangeable lens and a flash unit are releasably arranged in the camera body.
Then, both the camera body and any of the camera accessories refer to certain data stored in the camera accessory when the accessory is mounted on the camera body. It is possible to exploit the accessory maximally for performance by referring to the data. If the accessory is dedicated to the camera body on which it is mounted, the accessory can be exploited optimally for performance.
As pointed out above, a camera accessory that can be releasably arranged in the camera body can be exploited maximally for performance by referring to the data relating to it. In other words, if an accessory that is not designed so as to be dedicated to the camera body is mounted, the accessory will not be exploited satisfactorily for performance. If an accessory that is not dedicated to the camera body is mounted on the latter, the camera body can be functionally degraded to sometimes become damaged.
In view of the above identified circumstances, it is therefore the feature of the invention to provide a camera system and a camera accessory device that can determine if the camera accessory that is mounted on the camera body is designed to be dedicated to it or not.
In the first feature of the present invention, the above feature is achieved by providing a camera system comprising:
a camera body; and
an accessory device to be releasably mounted on the camera body;
the camera body having a camera side identification data table, a specifying section which specifies an appropriate data address to the accessory device and a judging section;
the accessory device having an accessory device side identification data table congruous with the camera side identification data table and an transmitting section which transmits the identification data stored in the accessory device side identification data table at the data address specified by the specifying section to the camera body;
the judging section being adapted to determine if a dedicated accessory is mounted or not by comparing the identification data transmitted back from the accessory device and the identification data stored in the camera side identification data table at the address corresponding to the data address.
In the second feature of the invention, there is provided an accessory device to be releasably mounted on a camera body having a functional feature of determining if an accessory device dedicated to the camera body is mounted on it or not, the accessory device comprising:
an identification data table held congruous with the camera side identification data table provided in the camera body; and
a transmitting section which selects an identification data in the identification data table and transmits it to the camera body in response to a specification by the camera body.
In the third feature of the invention, there is provided a camera body having a functional feature of determining if an accessory device designed to be dedicated to it is mounted on it or not, the camera body comprising:
an identification data table congruous with the accessory side identification data table held by the accessory device;
a specifying section which specifies an appropriate data address to the accessory device; and
a judging section which determines if the dedicated accessory device is mounted on it or not by comparing the identification data corresponding to the specified data address of the accessory side identification data table and transmitted back from the accessory device according to the specification by the specifying section and the identification data stored in the camera side identification data table at the address corresponding to the data address.
In the fourth feature of the invention, there is provided a camera system comprising:
a camera body; and
an accessory device to be releasably mounted on the camera body;
the camera body having a camera side memory section storing identification data congruous with the identification data stored in the accessory device, a detecting section which detects a predetermined operation by the user, a comparing section and a judging section;
the accessory device having an accessory device side memory section storing identification data congruous with the identification data stored in the camera body;
the comparing section being arranged in the camera body to receive an identification data from the accessory device when the predetermined operation is detected by the detecting section and compare the identification data with the corresponding camera side identification data;
the judging section being adapted to judge if the dedicated accessory device is mounted on the camera body according to the result of the comparison by the comparing section.
In the fifth feature of the invention, there is provided a camera system of a combination of a camera body and an accessory device, the camera system comprising:
the camera body having a communicating section which communicates with a specific accessory device according to a predetermined communication protocol and a discriminating section which determines if the accessory device coupled to it holds a predetermined quantity indicating a state of a pre-selected electric phenomenon; and
the accessory device having a holding section which holds the predetermined quantity indicating the state of the pre-selected electric phenomenon in a form recognizable to the discriminating section of the camera body.
In the sixth feature of the invention, there is provided a camera body applicable to a camera system of a combination of a camera body and an accessory device, the camera body comprising:
a communicating section which communicates with a specific accessory device according to a predetermined communication protocol; and
a discriminating section which determines if the accessory device coupled to it holds a predetermined quantity indicating a state of a pre-selected electric phenomenon.
In the seventh feature of the invention, there is provided an interchangeable lens applicable to a camera system of a combination of a camera body and an interchangeable lens, the interchangeable lens comprising:
a holding section which holds a predetermined quantity indicating the state of a pre-selected electric phenomenon in a form recognizable to a discriminating section arranged in the camera body.
In the eighth feature of the invention, there is provided a camera body applicable to a camera system of a combination of a camera body and an accessory device, the camera body comprising:
a communicating section which communicates with a specific accessory device according to a predetermined communication protocol;
a first matching determining section which acknowledges the possession of the first matching property of the mounted accessory device when communication is established by way of the communicating section;
a second matching determining section which detects a quantity indicating the state of an electric phenomenon held by the accessory device and acknowledges the possession of the second matching property of the accessory device when the result of the detection agrees with a predetermined quantity indicating the state of the pre-selected electric phenomenon; and
a control section which determines the possession of the proper matching properties of the accessory device and allowing the camera to operate when the first matching determining section acknowledges the possession of the first matching property and the second matching determining section acknowledges the possession of the second matching property.
In the ninth feature of the invention, there is provided an interchangeable lens applicable to a camera system of a combination of a camera body and an interchangeable lens, the interchangeable lens comprising:
a lens side communicating section capable of communicating with the camera body according to a predetermined communication protocol, the interchangeable lens being acknowledged to possess the first matching property by the first matching determining section arranged in the camera body when communication is established between the lens side communicating section and the camera body; and
a state-indicating quantity holding section which holds a quantity indicating the state of a pre-selected electric phenomenon, the quantity indicating the state of the pre-selected electric phenomenon being apt to be detected by the second matching determining section arranged in the camera body, the interchangeable lens being acknowledges to possess the second matching property by the second matching determining section when the detected quantity indicating the state of the electric phenomenon agrees with a predetermined quantity.
In the tenth feature of the invention, there is provided a camera system comprising:
a camera body; and
an interchangeable lens to be combined with the camera body;
the camera body having a camera side communicating section, a first matching determining section, a second matching determining section and a control section;
the interchangeable lens having a lens side communicating section and a state-indicating quantity holding section;
the camera side communicating section being apt to communicate with a specific accessory device according to a predetermined communication protocol;
the lens side communicating section being apt to communicate with the camera side communicating section according to the predetermined communication protocol;
the first matching determining section being adapted to acknowledge the possession of the first matching property of the mounted interchangeable lens when communication is established between the camera side communicating section and the lens side communicating section;
the state-indicating quantity holding section being adapted to hold a quantity indicating the state of a pre-selected electric phenomenon;
the second matching determining section being adapted to detect a quantity indicating the state of an electric phenomenon held by the state-indicating quantity holding section and acknowledge the possession of the second matching property of the interchangeable lens when the result of the detection agrees with a predetermined quantity indicating the state of the pre-selected electric phenomenon;
the control section being adapted to determine the possession of the proper matching properties of the interchangeable lens and allow the camera to operate when the first matching determining section acknowledges the possession of the first matching property and the second matching determining section acknowledges the possession of the second matching property.
Additional features and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The features and advantages of the invention may be realized and obtained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out hereinafter.